Research released last week by charity Go ON UK suggested that there are a further nine million people in Britain who do not have the basic online skills to log on to a website, buy something from Amazon, watch a video on YouTube or even send an email.

The number of people who have never used the internet is dropping steadily, according to the ONS statistics.

The third-quarter figure of 7.63 million is 2% lower than the second quarter of this year - and has dropped 9% year-on-year from 2011. and 9% lower than at Q3 2011.

By region, London had the highest rate of Internet users (88%); Northern Ireland the lowest (77%).